The education of the next generation of cancer researchers is essential to our progress in the prevention, detection, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer. This application seeks renewal of funding for the Tumor Biology Interdisciplinary Training Program that has been funded by NCI since 1996. Our program is the premier graduate and postdoctoral training program at Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC). Its major focus is to provide pre-doctoral and postdoctoral trainees with lifelong interdisciplinar skills that will enable them to make significant contributions in the eradication of human cancer and to interact productively in their future with clinical cancer research programs. The program is structurally integrated with the strengths of the NCI- designated, Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center (LCCC) at GUMC. LCCC provides a stimulating environment for the program with interdisciplinary collaborations, extensive core facilities to support research, and a forum fr communication and discussion of research. State-of-the-art cancer research training is available in the laboratories of the participating faculty. Courses, workshops, seminars, journal clubs, research fairs, and special interest group meetings contribute to the distinctly interdisciplinary training for pre- and postdoctoral fellows. Our faculty has developed more than a dozen cancer-related courses that integrate core concepts of cancer biology, clinical disease, bioinformatics as well as emerging research technologies, and health disparities. Exposure to clinical concepts is emphasized through courses, involvement in weekly clinical conferences, and seminars that focus on translational cancer research. The program has continuously attracted outstanding applicants and thus all available slots are filled annually. Many of our past trainees have gone on to prestigious research positions. Our program emphasizes recruitment of underrepresented minorities (URM) and a significant number of our URM trainees are now in faculty positions in academia. The continued support of this Program will allow us to maintain our mission to train the next generation of researchers that contribute to the eradication of cancer.